Peculiar
by EKAJ NOSREDNA
Summary: A short piece concerning Beast Boy and his unusual habit.


_I suppose I wanted to give this whole Fan-Fiction thing a try. So I wanted to try something short and simple. Review if you want. And of course, I own nothing._

Beast Boy liked to stare.

Strange as it was, it was something that couldn't be helped. His DNA held strands of thousands of different animal species, each more different than the last. Along with his heightened and enhanced senses, he simply took observing people, specifically his teammates. He couldn't stop it, honestly. And he was so good at it that he rarely got caught doing it.

He barely even noticed it at first. He would take in different smells, sounds, and even feelings from his friends. Each of them so distinct but also familiar.

Robin looked normal. This was a compliment though. Compared to an alien, a cyborg, a demonic telepath, and a green shape shifter, it's a welcome change. However, spending your childhood in a traveling circus and being trained by Batman doesn't qualify as normal. Indeed, his posture, dialect and mannerisms clearly dictated him the leader of the team. Beast Boy was no stranger to authority and he normally had no problem taking orders, even if he didn't always agree with them. Yet, when they weren't battling villains, Robin was actually very composed. Maybe a little competitive, but like the everyone else, a teenager. He always smelled like sweat and hair grease, of course.

Cyborg looked anything but normal, but that never mattered. He always looked confident and proud of himself. Beast Boy knew little of the tin-man's past, but he heard rumors of him having a promising High School football career. Sure, he'd have his own episodes every now and then, but you'd never think he was bitter about it. He always admired the metal man's morale, and he was highly grateful of his friendship. He smelled like…an I-Phone. Very high-tech and cleanly.

Starfire didn't look normal either, but that didn't stop others from noticing her. Even Beast Boy had to admit that she looked great. Tall, intelligent and strong. Plus she had the energy of a thousand stuffed cartoon teddy bears. True, she was still struggling a bit with the English language, but it never got her down. Like Cyborg, she always stands tall and with proper attention. And she always smelled like shampoo. And conditioner. And soap. And…other chemicals he couldn't quite identify. It was clear that the alien quickly took to Earth culture, and she was quite adept in many beauty products.

And then, there was Raven.

Out of all of the people he had met, and out of all of the friends he had, he liked staring at Raven the most. Because, unlike everyone else, Raven was a living paradox. A riddle that's both obvious and befuddling. She didn't simply straddle the line between normal and abnormal; She played jump rope with it. He simply couldn't explain clearly, but Raven was just…

Her hair was just a tad bit too short. Her fingers were just a tad bit too long. Her top lip was unorthodoxly larger than her bottom one. Despite her short stature, she had very long legs. And for someone who rarely fought hand to hand or did any weightlifting in the gym, she was very fit. In fact…she was remarkably shapely. Maybe it was due to her heritage? And she never held a scent. Or a least none protruded from her. She always smelled like tea leaves. Or like old textbooks. He could never quite pin down her own individual essence like the others. She was just…

"Beast Boy."

The Titan immediately snapped out of his trance, and found himself sharing eye contact with the enchantress in question. Her book was now on her lap, and legs crossed on the sofa.

"Yeah, Raven?"

The question came out more like a statement than he wanted it to.

"Staring is impolite."

Her question came out more like an accusation than he wanted it to.

"Yeah. Yeah it is. I'm sorry."

His apology, however, was sincere. He exited his seat in the kitchen and was about to head back to his room. Any of the other Titans would've let it go. But Raven wasn't like the others.

"Beast Boy?"

"…Yeah?"

"Why were you…staring at me?"

Her question came out more like curiosity than animosity.

"Because…you're peculiar, Raven. And I like that."

With that, the hero vacated the room, leaving Raven in a world of curiosity. But from that day forward, whenever Beast Boy stared at Raven, she never again questioned it. The young woman had been called many, many things in her life, but "peculiar" was something entirely different.

But she took it as a compliment.


End file.
